Tuberculosis Is a Highly Infectious Ailment - Essay Example

Benchmark Assignment: Tuberculosis Tuberculosis Tuberculosis is a highly infectious ailment spread by bacteria known as mycobacterium tuberculosis. The causative bacteria affect the respiratory system of human beings. The delicate nature of the respiratory system makes the disease highly dangerous and fatal if not controlled at early stages. The bacteria have the capability to advance to other soft parts of the body. Symptoms and complications The symptoms may not manifest in early stages of the infection. The stage, known as latent stage, is where the bacterium is in the body and the individual exhibits normal health behavior. However, the bacteria spreads faster and affects the internal systems such as the lungs. The major symptoms of the disease include tiredness, weight loss, stubborn and chronic coughs, night sweats and loss of appetite (Harvard University, 2010). Also, people with tuberculosis may have heavy sputum. An infection of the lungs makes breathing difficult, and a patient produces amphoric sounds when breathing. Mode of Transmission Tuberculosis is a highly infectious disease. It is spread through air. Individuals near an infected person are at a high risk of being infected. Normally, the bacteria are suspended in body fluid droplets suspended in the air when an infected person coughs, spit or sneezes. As such, any person who breathes that contaminated air is at a high risk of getting the disease. People at high risk include friends, family members, and health workers. Treatment Tuberculosis bacteria are highly resistant to medication. As such, it is important to detect the virus at early stages of infection. The treatment is done after a successful diagnosis that involves a test on the sputum, skin, and chest x-ray. Treatment depends on whether a person has only an infection or has active TB bacteria. Infected person may be treated using simple preventative drugs such as Isoniazid. However, advanced TB requires complex treatment. According to WHO, active cases of TB requires specialized drugs like Ethambutol, Pyrazinamide, Isoniazid and Rifampicin (2009). Tuberculosis medications are supposed to be taken accurately lest the bacteria becomes resistant to treatment. Demographics of Interest Tuberculosis is among the most deadly illnesses in the world and affects 2.3 billion people in the world (CDC). According to the American lung association, the threat of tuberculosis has been falling steadily from the 1990s (lung.org). In America, total deaths arising from the sickness has tumbled. In addition, most of the fresh infections are arising from immigrants. In fact, immigrant infections comprise 62% of total infections in the country. In 2013, 9582 cases of TB infection were identified in the US. The disease is prevalent in people with other infections that weaken their body immunity such as HIV (WHO, 2014). For years, TB has been common illness for people with HIV due to a weakened immune system. The weakness of the immune system is also prevalent in infants and the elderly. If exposed to the pathogens, theses group are highly vulnerable of getting the disease. Determinants of Health The determinants of health greatly affect the spread of the disease. The social-economic factors affect the spread of the disease. People with high income have more access to health facilities. They are also more informed about the disease. In this regard, they access medical services early. People with enough financial resources are also able to access quality health care services. According to research done by OECD, American healthcare is highly expensive and thus few people would afford to receive quality care (2012). In addition, the causative bacteria thrive well in moist and congested environments. Thus, people who live in congested areas are more prone to infection. According to Dean & Fenton (2010), physical environment influences the chances of interpersonal contact between people. Tuberculosis easily spreads in close contacts with diseased persons. As such, people in congested environments have a higher chance of being infected that people in less congested areas. The closeness of infected and the healthy people create an interplay to control or further spread the bacteria. Thus, mitigation of the disease should aim at ensuring that infected persons do not intermingle with healthy persons at close range to prevent an event where bacteria are spread through body fluids. Another determinant of health is personal behavioral characteristics. Tuberculosis is prevalent to people who engage in risky behaviors. For example, people who do not take precaution when they develop mild symptoms of illness and wait until the disease is fully developed. The prevalence among such individual is determined by the genetic makeup of the persona and the social support services that reach out to such individuals. The Epidemiologic Triangle The epidemiology triangle outlines the interrelation between the factors that lead to spread of the disease. They include the host, agent, and the environment. The three factors are bound by time. The relationship is shown by the figure below. The host As explained earlier, tuberculosis affects the respiratory system of human beings. The bacteria easily enter the body that has no string body defense mechanism. A weak body defense system allows the bacteria to penetrate and infect the internal organs. The pathogens often attack people who have other conditions weakening their immune systems such as HIV and cancer. The pathogens The mycobacterium tuberculosis penetrates the host depending on the exposure, level of immunity and resistance they get from the body. The pathogens enter the body easily in a weakened position. They attack the vital parts such as the respiratory system to further reduce the ability of an individual to expel them. The environment As noted, Tuberculosis is transmitted through air. The bacteria are get out of the host through persistent coughs and sputa. The bacteria are suspended in the air. The airborne droplets harbor the bacteria ready to infect a new person. The airborne droplets are concerted depending on the aeration and also the closeness of an individual to the patient. A new person gets infected by just inhaling the air with the droplets. Role of Community Health Nurse Community health nurses have a big role in control of tuberculosis. They nurses look for TB cases in the community and mitigate it before it gets out of hand. In essence, community nurses are the first health workers to identify the presence of the diseases. As such, they are better placed to report the health condition of the society for proper health strategies to be employed. After identification of a TB case in the community, nurses are required to collect enough data regarding the cases and seek relevant health promotion actions. The actions should aim at enabling the population deal with the disease by preventing new infections. The primary role of nurses should aim at prevention and control with methods such as health education and health promotion (Dean & Fentom, 2010). The American Lung Association and Tuberculosis The American Lung Association is dedicated to helping people dealing with lung diseases. The organization has experts in lung heath and offer support services for infected persons. It offers materials regarding disease such as tuberculosis. The resources touch on mode of infection, symptoms, and treatment. Further, it explains how people can avoid infection in high-risk environments (lung.org). People can report instances of Tuberculosis and other infectious diseases through the organization. The resources in the site are enough to inform the public on how to detect the lung diseases early and take precautionary measures before it spreads. The organization stipulates that the role of ensuring a healthy society starts with individual efforts, and the efforts are enhanced by having health information. Conclusion Tuberculosis is a deadly disease and can cause a health crisis if not contained. The threat of the disease is because of its ability to infect many people through air. The threat of infection is high in highly populated areas such as urban areas and slums. The disease is controllable when treated early; however, it becomes highly contagious when it fully develop in a human body without any interventions. Thus, nurses should play an active role in ensuring effective monitoring of community health. References CDC | TB | Data and Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://www.cdc.gov/tb/statistics/ Dean, H. D., & Fenton, K. A. (2010). Addressing social determinants of health in the prevention and control of HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted infections, and tuberculosis. Public Health Reports, 125(Suppl 4), 1. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2882967/. Harvard University. (2010). That Nagging Cough - Harvard Health Publications. Retrieved December 13, 2014, from http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mens_Health_Watch/2010/September/that-nagging-cough OECD. (2012). U.S. health care system from an international perspective. OECD Health Data 2012. Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/unitedstates/HealthSpendingInUSA_HealthData2012.pdf WHO. (2009). Treatment of tuberculosis Guidelines. World Health Organization, 29-70. Retrieved from http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2010/9789241547833_eng.pdf WHO. (2014, October). Tuberculosis. Retrieved December 10, 2014, from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs104/en/ Read More